5 truths to realise when it feels like everyone is always traveling — except you
Spend five minutes scrolling on Instagram or TikTok and you’ll end up with about 20 new places that are absolute must-sees and should immediately be added to your travel bucket list.
These jaw-dropping destinations — frequently portrayed in a way that is highly curated and edited — are often accompanied by cliches such as “the money will return but you’ll never be in your 20s again traveling the world” or “create a life you don’t need to escape from,” as if to say that life is only worth living if you drop everything to become a digital nomad and tick five new countries a year off your travel checklist.
Meanwhile, you’re sitting in your office, or doing whatever it is that you need to do to make a living, looking at these posts, thinking “Where the fuck did I go wrong? Shouldn’t I just sell my belongings, pack my bags, and start chasing sunsets like everyone on the Internet and their mother seem to be doing these days?”
When you look on social media, it seems like everybody is always traveling
I’ve been there. As someone who likes to explore new places and document these explorations, I used to be a big consumer of travel content on social media. I saw it as a source of inspiration not only for planning my travels, but also capturing them.
Yet slowly but surely, despite having visited many wonderful places at a young age, consuming high volumes of aspirational travel content made me feel like my life was somehow inadequate. The impression that I “shouldn’t be having a regular nine-to-five,” that I should be traveling more, and that “true and ultimate freedom” is achievable if only I work hard enough on that side hustle grew stronger by the day.
Social media is great at creating the illusion that some people’s lives are full of marvelous moments and endless explorations — and online influencers create businesses built on the promise that you too can do and have it all if only you follow their advice and work hard enough.
The value proposition typically goes like this: “I once had a tedious job like you. But with hard work and persistence, I was able to create the life of my dreams. Now I have the freedom to travel as much as I want thanks to my online business. If someone like me could do it, you can too!
Buy your ticket to freedom, AKA my online course, for just $599. Special discount for you today. 😉 It has information that any person with reasonable enough research skills can find online for free — but hey; I’m the one who goes on aesthetic vacations here.”
The fact that they started at a convenient time when being a content creator wasn’t a thing (i.e. their life circumstances are NOT the same as yours), that they may be more privileged, or that luck may have had a role to play in their success is somehow always omitted.
“Work hard enough and you too can build the life of your dreams” is a promise many try to sell online
Hearing someone tell you to “build the life of your dreams” can be a good motivation kick. It can encourage you to take a closer look at your life and rethink your priorities.
But it can just as easily make you feel like you a) made all the wrong life choices, b) are too late in the game, c) just aren’t working hard enough to achieve your dreams, d) were born into the wrong family or country or e) all of the above. Despite what the internet would have you believe, constant globetrotting is not most people’s reality and we won’t all become digital nomads.
So if the endless stream of awe-inspiring destinations and must-visit places makes you feel like you’re falling behind, you’re not traveling enough, or your life isn’t as exciting as it should be, here are five truths to help you realise that you’re probably doing just fine.
#1 The amount of photos shared from a destination is not directly proportional to the amount of time spent in the destination
In other words: if someone is posting marvelous travel content all year round, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they spend the majority of the year having a blast traveling the world and living that “digital nomad dream.”
It’s an obvious point but one that is all too easily forgotten. If you don’t know someone well enough (or at all, for that matter), it’s so easy to get sucked into their curated travel feed and think that this is their whole life. That they don’t have to work for money. That they don’t spend boring hours doing chores or typing away at their computers. That they somehow have more freedom and more vacation days than you do.
How do I know? Because I have been that person who people think travels all the time and only ever has fun. On multiple occasions, I’ve gotten comments from people who know me — but don’t know my life well enough to know how I actually spend most of my days — such as: “Oh, I saw you went somewhere again. You’re always traveling. How cool!” And I don’t even do this stuff for work. It’s a fun pastime.
I spent eight days in the Dolomites in the summer of 2022 — and came back with more than 500 pictures
Where did people get this impression? My Instagram account was the one to blame. When I went on a week-long trip, I would take enough photos and repurpose them in enough ways to make people think I was off enjoying myself for weeks at a time.
I don’t try to purposely create an illusion of constant travel, or invoke envy and rub my trips in people’s faces. I simply like to capture places and combine photos in different ways as a creative expression — a hobby that is by no means unique to me.
We all like to travel and we all like to take pictures when we travel. Some of us also like to share those pictures online. That’s not going to change any time soon. All we have to do is remember that 50 vacation pictures do not always equal 50 vacation days.
#2 Your favourite content creator probably didn't pay for that fancy trip out of their pocket
There are vacation photos your friends are posting and then there‘s the next-level “aspirational” travel porn. A beautiful girl with perfect hair sipping on Aperol in a gorgeous villa on the Amalfi Coast, a couple walking hand in hand on the longest pier in the Maledives, an online creator checking into a five-star safari lodge somewhere in Africa.
These experiences are not only glamorous and “Insta-worthy,” but also expensive as f*ck. And it’s good to realize that the people who promote them on social media don’t necessarily pay for them out of their pocket. Instead, they get invited by brands in exchange for exposure or content.
After all, how many of us can really afford to splash a few thousand on a night at an exclusive five-star accommodation?
I’m not saying you shouldn’t save up for a vacation in an exotic destination or a few nights in a fancy hotel. If that’s your biggest dream, then by all means, go for it!
All I’m saying is don’t feel shitty about your life when a creator on the Internet shares a luxurious trip to a remote island or an adventurous voyage to Antarctica that is totally out of reach for you. It doesn’t mean you’re behind in life (or travels).
Maybe it was their dream and they worked really hard to afford this trip. Or maybe, they were invited by a travel company to take pictures and videos, share some Instagram stories and posts, and enjoy the experience free of charge.
#3 You don't need to see every place in the world right now
Even worse than constantly being fed new and more exciting places you “just have to see” is this feeling, this FOMO, that you have to see them all right now because “YOLO,” ”life is too short,” and “money will come back but you’ll never be [insert your current age] again.”
Yes, you might die tomorrow and yes, there are arguments to be made for why you should dedicate some time to traveling the world when you’re young. It’s great for personal growth, teaches you independence and self-reliance, and you likely have fewer responsibilities than when you’re older.
There are also certain travel experiences that you can only have in your 20s, such as those tied to working holiday visas in countries like Australia, New Zealand, or Canada, which are only given out to people under 30 (or 35). Plus if getting shitfaced in Ibiza is on your bucket list, you can probably handle it better at 21 than when you’re 51.
Traveling does not have to end the day you turn 40
But your travels do not have to end the day you turn 40, the day you have a child, or the day you buy a house. You’ll have different responsibilities to juggle. But people travel well into their 50s, 60s, or even 70s and beyond if they have the good health and financial means to do so.
And maybe it’s worth saving some trips and travel experiences for later in life. You might even enjoy them more because you’ve had more time to save money for that experience that is out of reach for broke backpackers in their early 20s.
#4 You cannot see it all, so stop comparing your life to the lives of hundreds of other people
Here’s a confession: I sometimes look at travel posts on social media or browse books featuring beautiful destinations, and with every new spot I discover, I think to myself: “Oh wow, I need to see this one. Oh, this place is unique, I have to visit it one day. Damn, this is an experience I should try.”
Then I stop and panic a little. “How tf am I going to afford all this? How will I ever find the time to go on all these trips, let alone make the money required to pay for them?” These are just some thoughts that go through my head in those moments.
But such mental spirals are not only extremely unhelpful — they also don’t make any sense.
We’re consuming content from hundreds, if not thousands, of other people. How can we expect to relive all these experiences on our own?
The constant influx of “inspirational” quotes and imagery on social media can give you the impression that you can, should, and should want to see it all. But the unfortunate truth is that life is too short and the world is too big for anyone to do that.
Even if you dedicate months or years of your life to traveling, there will always be someone who’s been to a more remote and exotic destination than you, found that unique “hidden gem” that you missed, or had the means to afford experiences you could not.
Go ahead and try to set foot in every country on Earth if that’s what you wish. Spend as much time traveling as possible if that is your life mission and you can do it with care and responsibly.
Just know that difficult choices are unavoidable. It’s okay to miss out on places and experiences. It’s okay to choose one destination at the expense of another. And most importantly, it’s okay to not see it all.
#5 Constant globetrotting is not the holy grail
Traveling is a great way to expand your horizons, understand different cultures better, meet new people, and gain perspective on your life and daily troubles. But somehow, it feels like we’ve made constant globetrotting into the ultimate goal.
The number of places visited is used as a status symbol; a display of material, spiritual, and intellectual wealth. As if a person is somehow more distinguished, more knowledgeable, and wiser than the rest if they’ve managed to set foot on all continents by age 28. As if travel in and of itself is the only education you’ll ever need in life.
Constant travel isn’t and shouldn’t be the goal for everyone
But the truth is, being able to travel is a wonderful privilege that some people in this world don’t have access to.
Isn’t it also interesting that the vast majority of digital nomads are from countries whose passports have some of the highest mobility scores? (Just something to think of the next time an online creator says: “If I can be a digital nomad, you can too!”)
If you think constant globetrotting will give you the freedom and life fulfillment you’re so after, give it a shot. There is plenty of advice on the internet telling you how to do exactly that.
Just know that having work tied to a physical location, deciding to settle in one place to stay close to the people and things that matter to you, and not seeing as many places as other people seemingly do is not inherently bad.
Many of life’s great joys come with staying in one place long enough. Friendships that last years, having people physically present in your life that you can count on, and opportunities that come with staying in one place long enough are just a few.
Do you sometimes feel like everyone is always off traveling and you’re lagging behind? What are your thoughts on this topic? Let me know in the comments!